Lady Eagles top Plainview on the road

JAMES BARRINGTON, Canyon News staff

Published 6:00 pm, Friday, January 6, 2012

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Lady Eagles top Plainview on the road

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With 1.6 seconds remaining on the game clock, Plainview put up a shot to beat the buzzer that would have snatched victory from the Lady Eagles, but Morgan Dean was there to knock the ball away and the Lady Eagles improved to 5-0 in district action by a score of 27-26. This all came as the ball changed hands twice during the last 3.0 seconds of the game with Canyon clinging to a one-point lead.

“We had a feeling going in it was going to be a tight game,” Lady Eagle head coach Joe Lombard said after the victory was in his pocket.

The first quarter was an indication of the defensive nature of Friday’s struggle as the two teams combined for only nine points. With Plainview leading 5-4 at the end of the first period, the Lady Dawgs went to work in the second period trying to build their lead and took a 14-11 advantage to the locker room for intermission.

The third quarter was the only period of the game in which either team scored in double-digits during a quarter, as Canyon’s Lady Eagles put on the greatest show of offense during the game, with an 11-5 run that gave them the lead at 22-19. But nothing can be taken for granted in the Dog House, as Plainview’s ladies fought hard to protect their home court. While only 12 points were scored in the final period (7-5 in favor of Plainview), the action was fast and furious. Tied at 24 with 3:13 remaining in the game, Canyon took the lead for the final time with a three-pointer by Arin Rice with 2:37 showing on the clock.

With 32 seconds remaining, the Lady Dawgs pulled within one point at 27-26. Anyone familiar with basketball knows that 32 seconds can seem like an eternity when a tight ballgame is coming to a close.

With 3.0 seconds showing on the clock, action stopped with a Canyon foul that put a Plainview player on the floor, but neither team was into the bonus, so Plainview had the ball to in-bound.

Madison Parker was there for the Lady Eagles to steal the ball, but although she gained possession, she was called for traveling and the clock stopped again with 2.5 seconds showing. That was when Plainview’s in-bounded ball and potentially game-winning shot went up with 1.6 seconds showing, but Dean got a hand on the ball that deflected it harmlessly as the clock expired.

“I just knew we needed to stop the last shot and she came up and I was guarding the in-bounder, so I was able to help out with that,” Dean said afterward. “This gym is very hard to win in, so it was very good for us to win in it this year.”

“It was fun,” Arin Rice said of the game. “At the beginning of the game my offense definitely wasn’t very ‘on.’ I knew my offense wasn’t working, so I had to do something. They’re always pumped up when we come here. We’re big rivals and everything. Now they’re coming to our house.”

Lombard was grateful for the win as he considered some of the handicaps his Lady Eagles faced. “With Kyndal (Davis) not being with us tonight (She was home recovering from influenza.), that took away our fast break and some things that we get easy. But coming to Plainview, this is always one of the toughest places to play. It’s a lot of fun.

“Obviously it was high intensity and some stress out there. I’m really proud that our kids could come through it and win that game. We didn’t play anywhere close to picture perfect on offense, but our defense was really good.

“Arin Rice, I thought she did a tremendous job on their great point guard, (Laura) Castillo. Not only did Arin do a good job on that, Arin hit a couple of big baskets in the fourth quarter to allow us to pull it out. It was just a team effort.”

Candace Herrera may have summed up the victory best when she said, “We didn’t play our best, but I think we gave it our all, and we wanted it more.”

In the low-scoring contest, Madison Parker was the leading scorer for Canyon with 11 points. “Madison Parker had a double-double,” Lombard said. “In addition to her 11 points, she had 10 rebounds. She played well offensively and defensively.”

Dean had eight points and four rebounds. Rice had five of her six points during the fourth quarter, including the 3-pointer that put Canyon ahead to stay. Those were the only points scored by the Lady Eagles during the final period.

The win improved Canyon’s record to 17-3 overall and 5-0 in district. They will host Frenship, also 5-0 in district, Tuesday evening to settle the district leader as the first half of district play heads toward an end.